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Friday, February 6, 2015

Friday Round-Up: Free Agency Primer

I'll start with some big news. Though I was once again turned down by TSN for a full day Free Agent Frenzy show, I have decided to got at it on my on. And so I'm somewhat proud to announce (unless this turns into a horrible idea) the 1st Annual Rider Prophet CFL Free Agent Occurrence (calling it a frenzy just seems wrong). Tuesday I will be doing a live blog starting an hour before free agency opens and going until I decide enough is enough. Also watch my twitter feed for news, updates, thoughts and the ever popular Hobo Watch. Given how thin the free agent market is this year I realize this may not be the best time to try this out but I'll be at home anyway and its not like you won't be keeping tabs on what's happening so why not do it in an entertaining fashion. Join me Tuesday.

To get you read for free agency here's a breakdown by position.

Quarterback

There are no starting jobs up for grabs and
no highly sought after prospects hitting the market. I mean I doubt we are on
the cusp of a bidding war for the likes of Brian Brohm or Justin Goltz. The
irony for me the is that Kevin Glenn is the best available player but the only
team with a real need at QB is BC who just got rid of him

Best available: Kevin Glenn

Other names to watch: Dan LeFevour – His game is entirely base on his mobility and he
will be coming off major knee injury but for team in the market for a back-up
with upside… he’s a decent option

Runningback

Best available: Nic Grisby – I find it tough to be so negative about a guy who had
10 TDs and 1200 yards from scrimmage but realistically he won’t be starting in
2015 and I’m not even sure I’d be actively pursuing him if I was a GM.

Other names to watch:

Kendial Lawrence - a utlity guy for
Edmonton some running some receiving, some returning, very versatile weapon who
had a pretty productive season despite some inconsistent play.

Jonathan Williams - had a couple massive
games that should at least make someone want to bring him in for a look.

Wide
Receiver

Had potential to be a quality crop of
receivers… until Dressler and Green re-signed. There are a few decent options
out there but moreso role players than big impact guys.

Best available: Earnest Jackson – his 813 receiving yards jump out at you… until
you remember that 372 of that came in 2 games and he only managed 471 over the
other 12 games he played. Hard to tell if those 2 games are a sign of better
things to come or just an aberration.

Other names to watch:

Sam Guigere – One of the few Canadians
hitting the market who could legitimately fill a starting role.

O-Line

Was setting up to be a big year for top end
free agent O-linemen until Heenan, Holmes and O’Donnell came off the market. Clearly
Brett Jones is the prize possessions but he is exploring NFL options so I will
leave him out for now.

Best available: Stanley Bryant – two time all-star tackle who doesn’t really get
much fanfare for how good he is. Any team looking for a strong OL anchor will
be giving this guy a call. Somebody will be paying him a lot of money.

Other names to watch:Edwin Harrision and
SirVincent Rogers – Both are starting calibre import tackles so their phones
should be busy.

Alex Krausnik-Groh – I think he is an underrated
OL and in market thin on Canadians he becomes a fairly attractive option.

D-line

It’s a really weak market for D-lineman, there
are very few free agent DL to begin with and of those only a couple are even
noteworthy.

Best available: Justin Hickman – Didn’t have huge stats in his return to the CFL
but certain had an impact on the play of that line. I would expect a better
year out of him now that he will have a full CFL offseason and training camp as
opposed to coming in mid-year.

Other names to watch: Khalif Mitchell – already wore out his welcome in Toronto and BC
twice now, his play has slipped to the point where his baggage may no longer be
worth the hassle. Be interested to see if finds a new home… or if he will have
to spend more time focusing on his energy drink venture.

Linebacker

Best available: Rennie Curran – JC Sherritt’s resurgence makes Curran expandable
in Edmonton. He’s young and already proven he can play at a high level. He will
be highly covoted.

Other names to watch:

Sam Hurl – As I mentiopned, very few decent
Canadians hitting the market. Hurl is a solid player on teams and can
contribute on D.

Brian Peters – In only his second year he
developed into an impact player both on defense and special teams.

Defensive
Back

A few decent names out there. Not a ton of
need out there for DBs but there are a few starting spots up for grabs.